Crock Pot Mole Chicken Chili

If you ask me for my favorite chili recipe, I couldn’t possibly give you just one. If you twist my arm, I could give you two, black bean and beef and classic beef. Choice is always good, am I right?

In truth, I’ve got 8 chili recipes on this site so choosing a favorite isn’t easy. Nearly 10 years of blogging will do that to a person. (insert eye roll and shoulder shrug here.)

However, I’m really always looking for other chili recipes worthy of my time, our appetites, and this blog. And as far as my time goes, nothing at all compares to a crock pot meal so this mole chicken chili was right up my alley.

America’s Test Kitchen classic, big batch crock pot beef chili (see above) is incredible in its own right but I was looking to go in a different flavor direction.

And this mole chicken chili delivered! Though common to Mexican kitchens, mole is a usually a complicated sauce to make; an ingredient list being too intimidating to me want to attempt. Always including a little chocolate or cocoa powder and nuts, the flavor mole sauce is rich and deep, though never chocolatey or nutty.

This version, with a manageable list of ingredients, contains cocoa powder and peanut butter but in no way do you actually taste either flavor. They blend seamlessly with all of the other ingredients!

The shredded chicken, fairly bland on its own, soaks up all of this delicious sauce and makes for another cozy, hearty, and comforting winter chili.

This crock pot mole chicken chili is SOOO good!! And how could you possibly pass up a meal like this one on a chilly fall or freezing winter night?

Instructions

01

Stir the onions, oil, chili powder, cocoa powder, garlic, cinnamon, and cloves together in a medium heatproof bowl. Microwave on high for 5 minutes, stirring once halfway through the time.

02

Add the onion mixture to the crock pot along with the broth, tomatoes, raisins, peanut butter, tapioca, and chipotle chiles and stir to combine. Season the chicken with salt and pepper on both sides, then nestle the pieces into the sauce in the crock pot.

Cook on low for 4-6 hours.

03

Transfer the chicken to a cutting board and let it cool for a few minutes before shredding with two forks. Skim off any visible fat from the top of the sauce. Add the chicken back to the sauce and stir to coat. Serve hot with toppings.